Everything Changes
by StarbucksJunkie4ever
Summary: When their son pops back into their lives, nothing is as anyone hoped it would be.
1. Chapter 1

I fell off of the wagon with "Time", and I greatly apologize for that! I still plan to finish it. But there was a new plot (or beginning of one) that jumped into my head and so I figured I'd get it out on paper

None of the characters belong to me. Don't sue me. It's all for fun, not profit.

It had been 16 hours. 16 hours and absolutely no progress had been made. Fox Mulder could see that it was bothering her, that there was fear etched into her veins. The fears she'd had for years were now becoming truth. Dana Scully sat with the book in her hand, but had not turned the page for a good 45 minutes now. Mulder was lying on the couch with a basketball game on, hoping he could drown out his thoughts with the volume. However, the words "You are NOT my mother! And he is NOT my father! I do not want to be here, I don't want to talk to you, and I don't want you to talk to me!" continue to ring through his head, followed by a slam of the upstairs room that would soon be furnished with a bed, and other belongings for their lost son. After those words were screamed, he could almost visibly see the bright, ceramic doll Scully had become after finding their son, shatter into pieces.

"Mulder," it was so quiet he almost didn't hear it. He glanced over at her. She never looked small in the recliner, until now. She shut the book. "What are we supposed to do?"

He sat up and rubbed his face. "I'd say we pop a cork and celebrate getting the first fight out with our pre-pubescent child," he glanced over at her. Her expression did not change. "Look, Scully, he's probably just having a hard time adjusting. His whole life changed, and he went from one person he thought he'd live forever with to two people who are telling him the same thing," He took a deep breath. "Don't let it bother you too much. He's acting out of anger and betrayal."

At those words she glanced out the window. After a good two minutes, she turned back to him. "I am finding it hard to believe you are saying those words, that you believe them. Or that you expect me to believe them. Mulder, I've spent the last seven years thinking about what I could have done, or what could have been, with my son, our son. I can't just-"

"I really hope you're not implying that I haven't suffered from this, either," he said pointedly.

"No," she lowered her voice again and looked back out the window. "I didn't mean that. But Mulder, didn't you expect it to be different?" She looked back at him, tears in her eyes, trying desperately not to let them fall.

"Of course I did," he stood and walked behind her, gently massaging her shoulders. "But right now I am starting to wonder why it is so quiet upstairs," he said and glanced toward the stairs, continuing his ministrations with his hands. She looked up at him then up at the stairs, her pain becoming worry. She stood up and started toward the stairs. He followed her quick steps, and when they opened the door to what was supposed to be William's room, he wasn't there.

"Mul—" She was interrupted with a "Shhhh" and his finger on his lips. He then pointed toward their room. Their door was open, as usual, but the boy with his father's brown hair and his mothers bright green eyes was passed out on their bed, clutching the only thing he'd had since he could remember: his blue baby blanket his birth mother had given to him just after he was born.

Scully's jaw dropped and she covered her mouth with her hand, and turned into Mulder when he pulled her to him. She finally let the tears silently fall.


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry for the shortness of the first chapter (and this one, I'm working on the next right now!); I just write the scenes that play in my head! Please review!

It had been a rough night. After they had finally gotten some food into William, it was nearing 9 pm: Scully imagined this was probably too late for a seven year-old to be awake. Mulder had seemed to find a way into the boy's graces: humor and fun. After many jokes at the table, and in front of the television, he finally convinced him to go upstairs with him. Scully was folding the blankets on the couch, and realized that she hadn't heard any sounds from upstairs in a while. "Mulder?" she called quietly, with no response. She dropped the blanket onto the couch and started up the stairs. She opened the door to their room, and was about to say something, when she saw that Mulder and William were fast asleep on the bed. Their foreheads were touching; Mulder must have been telling William a story when they passed out. She admired the sight of them, and moved closer to the bed. She pulled the comforter up over both of them and let out a deep breath. She kissed William's forehead, and then Mulder's. She turned the lights out on her way out of the room and shut the door.

Dana turned all of the lights off in the house and sat on the couch, inching off her slippers. She lay down and covered herself with the blankets she'd recently folded and wondered if she would be able to have a relationship with her son, and what it would look like. She realized she was probably just jealous, but the pain inside her had grown tenfold within the past fifteen minutes. Finally, she closed her eyes and the darkness surrounded her.

In the morning, she woke to the smell of coffee. She stirred and rubbed her face before rolling over to face away from the back of the couch.

"Hi," Mulder greeted her with a cup of coffee in his hands, held out to her. "Why didn't you wake me up last night?" he was speaking quietly, so she assumed William was still asleep. She took a sip of the coffee.

"Mmm, thank you. Tastes like heaven," she sat up. He continued to question her with his eyes. "I didn't want him to wake up with you not there, after he'd fallen asleep. And three is company for that size of a bed. I'd rather that one of us at least not ruin the potential for a relationship," she took another careful sip of the coffee.

"Scully," he whispered in an unbelieving tone, and took the cup of coffee from her, setting it on the table. "He'll come around. He didn't say much last night. I just changed the subject when he didn't laugh or nod at me," he was caressing her cheek with his thumb. "Scully, I know you've always blamed yourself, and I know we've never talked about it. That was probably a fault of ours, of BOTH of ours," he maintained her eye contact as she avoided his gaze. "But he's here now, and he's lost everything he's ever known. We're complete strangers to him, so it's going to take some time." He dropped his hand and tapped her shoulder lightly. "And, we have to get him a bed today. He's not into spooning," he smirked as she turned back to him, enjoying the humor, at least in her eyes. "You can take control of the whole bedroom organization thing. I'd probably get in trouble anyways, finding all the paranormal bed sheets and side lamps," he smiled.

She laughed at that, a few tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry Mulder," she said as a few tears fell. He pulled her into his arms. "I didn't realize I had any expectations until he showed up in our life. I was so comfortable with the way we were," she said and turned her head into his neck.

"Well," he said and pulled back, wiping the tears from her eyes with her thumbs. "We aren't going to change, you and me," he said and pulled her into him again. "and no more sleeping on the couch. I'm going to make sure the bed we get for William today is delivered by tonight."

She laughed again. "After one night Mulder, you can't live without me?"

"Always," he mumbled into her neck. "Always." He whispered again.


End file.
